This year's Japan trip was good for sure. Ironically because I didn't bring Lincoln along. I had been firm with him, if his grades didn't improve then he can forget about going with us. And by mid-year I didn't see any improvements in both his grades and attitudes and made the call to leave him behind. As usual he never proved me wrong when he got 31 points for his L1R5, even making excuses to avoid taking the report book home. In any case..... this year's trip has been more satisfying for sure too. I covered most places I want to visit in my itineray and I didn't lose temper at all from having to deal with that boy.
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| Lindsay Enjoying Her In-flight Entertainment - Galaxy S23+ |
Our trip started with a stop in Tokyo as usual. This time the tourist arrival centre was still open and we could immediately send our luggages with Yamato. I also decided to get an eSim instead of a physical SIM card, so we could head to the hotel directly.
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| Making Our Way to The Taxi Stand - Galaxy S23+ |
This time we stayed at Mimaru Hatchobori which is about 1 km away from Tokyo station. I got a room of similiar size as last year's, although this time the cost seems higher.
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| A Typical Mimaru Room - Galaxy S23+ |
We ended the night quickly after a trip to Bic Camera and a quick dinner at Yoshinoya in Yurakucho. It was really surprising how the Yoshinoya Japan's food tastes so good, so different from the Yoshinoyas in Singapore...
On the following day we started our adventure with a trip to Grandberry Park and Snoopy Museum. I had put off visiting Snoopy Museum last year, but this year I finally made it.
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| Hello Snoopy! - A7RMk3 + FE24mm F1.4GM |
Snoopy Museum is not a flashy place like Disneyland or Sanrio land, it's definitely more subdued with wholesome theme of love and childish naivety. And that is exactly the reason why I enjoy reading Snoopy comics even to date, because the world of Snoopy is so much simpler to understand and find joy in.
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| The Missus and Her Long Lost Relative - A7RMk3 + FE24mm F1.4GM |
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| My 2 Ladies - A7RMk3 + FE24mm F1.4GM |
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| One of The Many Cute Exhibits - A7RMk3 + FE24mm F1.4GM |
What I enjoyed most is Snoopy's playfulness, how he masquarades as various characters from the World War Ace pilot to Joe Cool, and other weird characters that came into his mind. A little bit of playfulness never fails to make our world happier for sure.
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| That's A Large Snoopy - Galaxy S23+ |
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| Lindsay Could Draw a Good Snoopy - Galaxy S23+ |
After the visit, we made time for shopping since Grandberry Park is a renowned outlet. Prior to that the missus already made a stop at Sanrio Gift Gate for some Kuromi & Hello Kitty goodies.
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| More Snoopies Outside - Galaxy S23+ |
We next had lunch at Afuri which sported long queues, however it was a big "Meh" for me..... The ramen was seriously underwhelming in taste, the reputation salvaged only by one piece of chasiew, which was still too little.
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| A Somewhat Forgettable Ramen - Galaxy S23+ |
Anyway, after lunch, we shopped for a while in the outlet. Well it was mostly the missus who shopped while Lindsay and I were just looking for food.
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| She Just Can't Stop Eating Ice Cream - Galaxy S23+ |
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| Good Night From Grandberry Park - Galaxy S23+ |
From Grandberry Park we made our way to Tokyo Tower. I've been trying to convince the missus to come here and we finally made it on our 3rd Japan holiday.
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| I Was So Excited to See This View - A7RMk3 + FE24mm F1.4GM |
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| See How Nice The Photo Turned Out? - A7RMk3 + FE24mm F1.4GM |
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| While Lindsay Just Wanted to be Goofy - A7RMk3 + FE24mm F1.4GM |
We also shopped for some exclusive Tokyo Tower souvenirs while Lindsay got to enjoy her favourite Cremia ice cream cone there before we ended the day and returned for dinner at Yoshinoya near our hotel.
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| Such Beautiful View From The Tower - A7RMk3 + FE24mm F1.4GM |
The 2nd day of the trip started with a walk to Tokyo Station from where we took a train ride to Tokyo Disneyland. But alas, this time I didn't go in. We only went as far as Tokyo Disneyland Resort Hotel after shopping in Ikspiari.
Lindsay and I had our fill of Daikanyama Candied Apples while we were there, and as usual we had seconds and thirds.
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| Best Candied Apple I've Ever Tasted So Far - Galaxy S23+ |
The candied apples there are so much better compared to the one we had in Sapporo. The apples are sweet and crunchy while perfectly coated with crystallized sugar syrup that only further enhanced the deliciousness of the apples.
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| Lindsay Enjoying Her Candied Apples - Galaxy S23+ |
From Ikspiari we headed back to the hotel first to drop our first batch of shopping stuffs. Then we continued to Ikebukuro so Lindsay could go to Animate. Ikebukuro was just too crowded and tiring. And Animate was basically a sea of people moving around. I was quite overwhelmed by the crowd and just rested at one corner while waiting for Lindsay. But eventually I had to move too, because if left to her own, there would be no end to her shopping there.
Finally we made our way to Ginza from where we took a short rest at Tully's Coffee before finally continuing to Asics Walking where I splurged on 3 pairs of shoes for myself, the missus and Lindsay.
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| Good Night Ginza - Galaxy S23+ |
We then continued to Uniqlo where I practically just gave up and sat down while the missus went on with her shopping, after which we finally called it a day and returned to the hotel.
On what's officially our last day in Tokyo, I dropped the missus and Lindsay in Ginza Six after a quick breakfast in a nearby cafe. After that I took a trip to Shinagawa to visit ONE's office to meet my ex boss. The last I seen him was back in 2023.
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| Welcome to Shinagawa - Galaxy S23+ |
I was really surprised at how he aged so much now. It saddens me to see him now, but then again perhaps he is happy the way things are because life is less stressful too, I just don't know... Back then in Singapore he was a very influential person, I really can't take seeing him reduced to a mere manager in a local office. I still have a lot of respect for him, especially how he had helped me to remain employed in "K" Line back then. Anyway I was just happy to had a chance to catch up with him.
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| Stay Healthy and Happy always Saito-san - Saito-san's iPhone |
From Shinagawa I returned to Ginza to fetch the missus and Lindsay. We had lunch at Ginza Lion Beer Hall, which is like a historic place in the area. And yes, the interior of the beer hall is really something. The place was crowded, but we still managed to get a table without waiting.
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| Inside Ginza Lion Beer Hall - Galaxy S23+ |
I tried a bottle of Sapporo Beer with 0% alcohol, it tastes weird for sure....
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| My "Beer" - Galaxy S23+ |
The missus also tasted the "beer" out of curiousity, which I'm certain she regretted.
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| So How Does It Taste? - Galaxy S23+ |
Anyway after that late lunch we made our way to Tokyo Station where I was due for my 2nd reunion of the day.
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| Same Old Tokyo Station - A7RMk3 + FE24mm F1.4GM |
We waited a while in the station exploring the familiar character street before I met up with my ex team mate who inspired me to continue practicing karate again.
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| Hello Too Nishikawa-san - Galaxy S23+ |
We had coffee and chatted for about an hour before we parted ways. There are times I wish I could change industry like he did... but it's just so difficult... In any case it was good meeting him too.
From Tokyo Station we went to Marunouchi to see the illuminations there. The first stop was the Christmas market opposite the station.
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| The Christmas Market as Viewed From Marunouchi Street Park - A7RMk3 + FE24mm F1.4GM |
From the Christmas market we entered Marunouchi Street Park, but not before I bumped into a memory from my Nippon Yusen days.
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| NYK's Yusen Building - Galaxy S23+ |
And after that brief encounter we finally entered Marunouchi Street Park.
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| Hello Marunouchi - A7RMk3 + FE24mm F1.4GM |
The Marunouchi illumination is really charming and romantic. We walked along paved streets lined with ginkgo trees dressed in warm fairy lights with some food carts scattered along the streets to provide some warmth for the cold travelers.
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| Lovely Sight All Along - Galaxy S23+ |
Even the missus really enjoyed walking along that street, stopping for photos and taking videos numerous times, to the point Lindsay got really annoyed.
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| Enjoying Our Walk - A7RMk3 + FE24mm F1.4GM |
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| The Missus and Lindsay - A7RMk3 + FE24mm F1.4GM |
But being the good girl that she is, she still helped to take photos of the missus as asked.
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| Last View of Marunouchi - Galaxy S23+ |
We stopped for dinner at Hanamaru Udon near our hotel, and that's how our last night in Tokyo came to an end.
On the following day it was time to check out from Mimaru and head to Haneda where we continued to Hakodate to start the Hokkaido leg of our holiday.
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| The Missus Bidding Mimaru Goodbye - Galaxy S23+ |
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| Patiently Waiting to Board Our Plane - Galaxy S23+ |
Finally, it was time to experience some snow.
Before moving to the next part of the holiday, here's a closing shot for part 1:
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| The Missus and Marunouchi Street Park - A7RMk3 + FE24mm F1.4GM |
~Photos Taken With Samsung Galaxy S23+ and Sony A7RMk3 + FE24mm F1.4GM~
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